Grant Shapps Appointed International Development Minister - To The Surprise Of Many

Grant Shapps has been made international development minister in the Cabinet reshuffle, a move that has confounded his supporters and delighted his critics.

Shapps was moved to the new job from that of Conservative party chairman - regarded by most as a demotion - just days after it was reported that senior Tories had been urging the prime minister to sack him.

But it was also just days after the Tories won a majority against all expectations and the party chairman plays a crucial role in the electoral machine, running the party machine and overseeing Conservative Central Office.

It was announced on Monday evening after a day of new appointments. Earlier in the day, commentators were wondering what had happened to him when his name was not mentioned in the announcements.

Grant Shapps

He became mired in controversy after he was accused of anonymously editing his own entry and those of other Tory politicians on Wikipedia.

Shapps, who as chairman attended Cabinet as minister without portfolio, dismissed the accusations as "bonkers" and alleged that the anonymous Wikipedia "sock-puppet" might have been a member of Labour's press team.

At the time of the allegations, Cameron stood by the Shapps, insisting he was doing a "great job".

Earlier in the year, Labour demanded an immediate investigation into whether Shapps had breached the codes of conduct for ministers and MPs after it was revealed that he continued working as a marketer of get-rich-quick schemes under the pseudonym Michael Green after entering Parliament.

He had emphatically denied the accusation only weeks earlier.

On Twitter, Shapps' critics reacted to the news with glee, with the press calling it a demotion.

"Hi, foreign country. I'm Grant Shapps, the new Minister for International Development and I can show you how to get rich in 10 easy steps."